UK passenger traffic flies past 300 million milestone

UK airports handled 302 million passengers last year, marking the busiest ever year for aviation according the Civil Aviation Authority data.

It showed a 2% increase in passenger numbers compared to 2024.

Despite the numbers, on time performance data also improved overall.

The CAA said 73% of all flights were on time during 2025 which is an improvement of about 6% on last year, but is still down on pre-Covid highs.

The most popular destinations to fly to in 2025 were perennial favourites such as Dublin, Dubai and sunshine gateways Alicante, Malaga and Palma de Mallorca.

Liverpool Airport saw the biggest growth in passenger numbers, up 11% in 2025, followed by Edinburgh and Newcastle airports.

“A record year for passenger numbers underlines the importance of boosting airport capacity as we progress our work to prepare for a third runway at Heathrow, and drive forward approved expansion plans at Gatwick and Luton,” said Aviation minister Keir Mather.

“Expansion will unlock more choice for passengers, could create thousands of highly skilled jobs.”